University of Wisconsin President Ray Cross on Tuesday asked the Legislature's budget-writing committee to approve a new public authority for the UW System, a "dedicated and stable funding stream" and to reduce the governor's proposed $300 million budget cut over the next two years.

Shortly after he finished his testimony, a handful of protesters burst into the room shouting, "No cuts, no deals." Followed by four Capitol police officers, the protesters marched past the table where Cross was sitting to give testimony before the Joint Committee on Finance.

If Park Bank is liable for not spotting Sujata "Sue" Sachdeva's $34 million embezzlement from Koss Corp. and has to reimburse the company, Koss Chief Executive Michael Koss should also be ordered to personally pay the public company he runs, the bank argues in a new lawsuit.

Grant Thornton, Koss Corp.'s former auditor, should also have to pay a portion of any award that may be ordered, Park Bank argued in the latest twist in a long-running court fight stemming from Sachdeva's massive embezzlement.

"Park Bank denies any and all liability to Koss in this case," the bank said in its action. "Nevertheless, should Park Bank be found liable to Koss (Corp.) and required to pay damages to Koss, in this case, those damages will have been the result of a common liability of Park Bank, Michael Koss and Grant Thornton, thereby entitling Park Bank to (a) contribution from Michael Koss and Grant Thornton."(3)

Dietrich-Smith (still) focused on his job, not Suh

Green Bay -- Expecting verbal grenades from Evan Dietrich-Smith this week? Not going to happen. From the moment Ndamukong Suh stomped on the Green Bay Packers guard, he has maintained the same benign reaction.

It's football. It happens. I'm not worried about it.

When the Packers travel to Ford Field for the first time since that infamous Thanksgiving Day game on Sunday, Dietrich-Smith is worried a lot more about starting at guard for the first time this season than anything Suh-related. Prepared to start from here on out, the 6-foot-2, 308-pound guard will get his chance to be known for something other than Suh's Thanksgiving victim.

"For me, it's just about getting out there and putting out good film and showing the coaches what I can do," Dietrich-Smith said, "and making sure that my teammates see that I'm playing at the level they expect everybody to play at. That's the biggest excitement for me. Just being able to play and be a part of the team."

When Josh Sitton suffered a knee injury at Detroit last season, Dietrich-Smith saw his first extended action on Green Bay's offensive line. Starting three games, Dietrich-Smith was mostly solid. Green Bay averaged 39.7 points per game in the wins over the New York Giants, Oakland Raiders and Chicago Bears.

"I have a lot of confidence in Evan," Rodgers said. "I think he’s done a good job whenever he gets called on, whether it’s center or guard. We believe he’s going to be a big part of the future of the Packers’ offensive line. It will be good for him to get some reps in at the start of the game. He did a good job last week coming in off the bench cold. He’ll be ready to play."

Much like T.J. Lang, Dietrich-Smith is a player who fully admits he had growing up to do off the field to reach this point. Married, with a child, he's done that. The couple celebrated their daughter's birthday over the bye week. On the field, Dietrich-Smith fit in just fine against the Arizona Cardinals. In rushing for 176 yards, Green Bay didn't miss a beat when Bryan Bulaga went down.

Ford Field will be a different challenge. The Packers have played in some tough environments already this season. This time, however, they'll do so with a reshuffled offensive line communicating with each other.

"We've been in some pretty loud places but we practice that stuff all week," Dietrich-Smith said. "It's not something we let determine or take away from what we're doing. It's something that we all expect to see. It's going to come eventually. We just have to be ready to deal with it."

Last year, Suh's ejection sucked the life out of the stadium. Instead of settling for a field goal after the failed third down, the Packers scored a touchdown and rolled to a 27-15 win.

Dietrich-Smith knows they'll need to take the crowd out of the game Sunday. And he'll likely be playing a key role in that.

"Put some scores up on them quick and you can pop the balloon," he said. "You get the air out of the building. And everything else kind of falls through. You have to set your own pace and play your game and do the things we're accustomed to doing and make sure that's how it goes and not let it dictate what we're doing.

"I've accepted my role for the year and I knew what was expected of me. Now, the roles have changed. That's what happens. You hope you can get through the whole year without an injury but stuff happens. So roles have changed and I expect to go out there and play at a high level."

About Tyler Dunne

Tyler Dunne covers the Green Bay Packers. He has been on the beat since 2011, winning awards with the Pro Football Writers of America and Milwaukee Press Club.